The Monkey Ate My Cookie and Other Stories from Bali.

By Susan Weston

Leaving Canggu

I made my way to Ubud, Bali. My reservation at Tribe Theory in Canggu was finished. I was sad to leave. Many of the people that stay at Tribe are there for a month or longer. We became a little family. It was my safety net, and I needed to spread my wings and fly.

Ubud

First impressions of Ubud: It is beautiful and very touristy. I assumed the beach towns in Bali would be more crowded, but I was wrong. Ubud has upscale stores and restaurants with the people to match.

Ubud Bali Dairy Queen — Polo Ralph Lauren in Ubud

I am staying at the Shindu Homestay. I have my own patio. There is always a carafe of hot water on the table for tea and coffee. The breakfast is also fantastic and free.

I thought all WIFI was the same. It is not. I have been learning the hard way. I can watch youtube and surf the web without a problem. Teaching English… problem.

I received a slap on the wrist for an IT issue. So I googled the nearest co-working place and practically ran there before my next class. This cost me a lot of money and time.

I am only booked at the homestay until tomorrow. I just, as I am writing this, found a place to stay with appropriate WIFI.

Indonesia’s Visa Process

This might get confusing, so I apologize. The majority of Indonesia’s long-term travelers use one of two types of visas: Free Visit Visa and Visa on Arrival (VOA).

A Free Visit Visa grants you thirty days in Indonesia for free but is not extendable. It is issued at the immigration checkpoint and does not need to be applied for in advance.

A VOA (Visa on arrival) grants you up to sixty days in Indonesia. On arrival at the immigration checkpoint, you need to purchase the visa for $37 BEFORE IMMIGRATION. This grants you thirty days AND the option to extend.

DMV Meme — I am scared the visa process with look like this.

Extending the visa for another thirty days is not the easiest process. It takes three different appointments over a week’s time and more money. From what I have read, it compares to going to the DMV in the US three days in a row.

I’m Going to Malaysia.

After thirty days with a Free Visit Visa or sixty days with a VOA, you must leave the country or face heavy fines. Although there is no specific length of time, you must leave the country before you can come back.

Let me introduce the “Visa Run.” A visa run entails leaving the country and then re-entering to obtain a new visa. The travelers I have met usually fly to the closest, cheapest country and fly black. Sometimes on the same day.

I have a VOA and would have to start the renewal process this week. This will only get me another thirty days, and I will be here longer than that. So I would also have to do a “visa run.”

Instead of going through the whole renewal process, I will fly to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Instead of turning right back around, I am going to stay there for a few weeks. When I re-enter Indonesia, I should receive a new visa, and it should last me until I come back to the states.

Sorry, that’s a lot of information. In short, I am going to Malaysia for seventeen days. Then I am coming back to Indonesia.

The Monkey Ate My Cookie

I went to visit the Monkey Forest to check one off the “what you are supposed to do when you visit Bali” list. It was a bunch of monkeys with a bunch of tourists trying to take photos. This may sound weird… but I already have a lot of photos with monkeys.

Monkey is hanging with the monkey statue — Monkey Forest

After I left, I went to a pharmacy to buy some food. I had to walk twenty feet, just out the pharmacy’s door and into Hubud. At about thirteen feet, a monkey jumps on me and grabs the whole unopened package of cookies. He came out of nowhere.

The monkey ate my cookies — Crackers Round 2

I put my head down in shame and went back into the store to buy another package of cookies. This time I put the package down my pants and ran door to door.

I would not have been a happy girl if that monkey stole my cookies again. You can steal my cookies once, and I will let it go. Twice, I’ll cut you. Obviously, the monkey would kick my ass, but I would give it a good fight. And flip him off as the ambulance drove away.